The
Grand Caledonian Tour was a 15 day tour of Scotland visiting the all 4
points of the compass. Join or leave the tour at anytime, so ideal for
those on a time constraint.
There
was NO entry fee, other than a small admin only to cover materials,
which included a souvenir roadbook with full gazetteer.
Highland,
Lowland, mountains, glens, coasts and islands. Fabulous scenery,
fantastic roads, reasonable daily mileages.
This was the ideal event for those with a
classic or sporting car.
Day 2
WW2 Enigma machine
Mull of Galloway
Portpatrick
| | |
 | Grand Caledonian Tour -
25 September to 9 October
Day 2 - Sunday 26 September ; Moffat to Portpatrick
 The
crews gathered at the main square in Moffat for the start of our second
day. Ranald Bruce and Louise Wall joined us in their BMW ready to head
west through Dumfries and Galloway.
But
first we went north out of  Moffat heading back up to the Devil's
Beeftub, breaking left toward Greenhillstairs and the M74 motorway.
Crossing the River Clyde, then ducking below the motorway we turned due
west to Leadhills, the second highest village in Scotland,
and famous for it's lead, silver and gold mines.
We continued through
Wanlockhead, with its mining museum that offers a gold panning
experience, handy to pan for some petrol money! Through the Mennock
Pass where much mining and panning for precious minerals was carried
out in times past.
Reaching
the village of Mennock it was a quick blast down the A74 to
Thornhills where we once again headed west, passing through
Moniaive, the ‘Hill of
Streams’ (from the Gaelic monadh-abh), The village is where the three glens of Craigdarroch, Dalwhat and
Castlefairn meet.
It was also the 17th century refuge for the Covenanters, led by
James Renwick, born in Moniaive. Aged 26 he was the last
Covenanter to be executed in Edinburgh.A plaque marks his birthplace.
The route continued to St. John's Town of Dalry, home to
many world famous people, including cryptographer Hugh Foss who worked
on the Enigma machines at Blethcley Park in WW2.
 Passing New Galloway we again turn west, through the Galloway Forest to the market town of Newton Stewart.
We
take the A75, the main route to the Irish ferry terminal at Stranrear.
However, we jump off at Glenluce into the Rhins of Galloway,
following the 'Mull of Galloway Trail' which leads all the way
down to the end of the peninsula, the southernmost point of Scotland.
Here a group of crews gathered for a quick photo opportunity at the lighthouse.
Only
way out was backup the peninsula, choosing different roads where
available, which are few. A short run into Portpatrick completed our
tour for the day. Great weather, views and remote countryside had been
travelled over to reach this western edge of Scotland..
Portpatrick
Tomorrow we head north up the west coast over to the Cowal Peninsula to Inveraray |
| Published 20 October 2021
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